Trump, Clinton in virtual tie in N.H., WBUR poll finds

With less than a week before the election, the presidential race in New England’s only swing state is statistically tied, according to a new poll out Thursday morning.

A WBUR poll of New Hampshire’s likely voters gives Republican nominee Donald Trump a 40 percent to 39 percent lead over Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, well within the poll’s margin of error of 4.4 percentage points. Two weeks ago, the same WBUR poll showed Clinton with a 41 percent to 38 percent lead.

Several recent polls have given Clinton a five-point lead in the battleground state, and the new survey signals that the FBI investigation of newly found Clinton e-mails might be taking a toll.

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The campaigns are acting like the race is tightening, as well. Trump is scheduled to campaign in the state Friday and Monday, the day before the election. Hours before Trump campaigns on Monday, President Obama will visit the state to make his pitch for Clinton.

In New Hampshire’s nationally watched Senate race, incumbent Republican Kelly Ayotte held a slim lead in the WBUR poll over her Democratic challenger, Governor Maggie Hassan, 48 percent to 43 percent, just outside the margin of error. The race could play a big role in deciding which party will control the Senate for the next two years.

In the presidential race, third-party voters could make a difference in the closing days, said MassINC Polling Group’s Steve Koczela, who conducted the poll for WBUR. While this latest poll showed that just 4 percent of Granite State voters were undecided, 10 percent were supporting Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson and another 3 percent said they backed Green Party candidate Jill Stein.

“I would keep an eye on third-party voters to see if they stick with their choices when the race is looking tight,” Koczela said.